Between the Rock and a hard Brexit

U-turn: although Madrid remains opposed to an independent Scotland there will be no Spanish veto on EU membership

April 3, 2017

Murray Ritchie explains why Scottish nationalists are smiling.

Scotland’s first minister Nicola Sturgeon could be forgiven if she let out a shout of delight when the Spanish let it be known they might use their veto to wreck the United Kingdom’s Brexit strategy.

As ever, the Spanish are indignant with the UK over Gibraltar which they are determined to return to Madrid’s jurisdiction. And, suddenly, they have the European Union behind them now that Britain’s departure has left it outnumbered in the Brussels negotiations by 27 to one.

But it is in Scotland that the Spanish intervention is being regarded as of beneficial significance. Scots who support independence have been told for years that Spain would veto Scottish membership of the EU.

Suddenly Brexit has changed that. Now it is the British who are being threatened by Madrid’s veto while the Spanish have suddenly softened their opposition to any application by an independent Scotland to join the EU.

Spain’s foreign minister Alfonso Dastis announced that, although Madrid remains opposed to an independent Scotland, there would be no veto.

After years of Spanish mutterings about blocking Scotland in the EU because it would encourage secessionist movements in Spanish regions, including Catalonia and the Basque country, Madrid will now concentrate on Gibraltar.

As Brussels has made clear, the EU is bound to “stand up for its members’ interests” – which in the case of Gibraltar means Spain

The people of Gibraltar find themselves with something in common with Scotland. Like the Scots, Londoners and the Northern Irish, they voted by a clear majority in last June’s EU referendum to Remain.

In fact, Gibraltarians were the keenest Remainers of all, with 96 per cent in favour. Spain has no problem with Gibraltarians choosing to remain in the EU, but it refuses to countenance the Rock remaining British.

The sovereignty issue has been contentious for centuries, but after Brexit the UK now finds itself isolated against the EU and it also finds Spain with 26 potential allies in this new disagreement.

As Brussels has made clear, the EU is bound to “stand up for its members’ interests” – which in the case of Gibraltar means Spain.

When the Prime Minister, Theresa May, sent her letter to Brussels last week triggering Article 50 a mention of Gibraltar was conspicuous by its absence. Foreign Secretary Boris Johnson talked of Britain’s “rock-like” support for Gibraltar – but did not quite explain how this could work in the face of a Spanish veto.

In Edinburgh, the Spanish intervention was received with delight and amusement. Those pesky Spanish were suddenly talking of wielding their much-vaunted veto against Britain and Brexit instead of against Scotland, thus shooting one of the British Unionists’ foxes in the debate about a second Scottish independence referendum.

The significance of Gibraltar to Scotland and vice versa has been obvious to both for many months. Talks between the Scottish government and Gibraltar have been ongoing since long before the EU referendum.

There has been speculation that Trident nuclear submarines based on the Clyde could be moved to Gibraltar in the event of Scottish independence.

At last year’s Scottish National Party (SNP) conference – where Gibraltar had an exhibition stand – senior Gibraltar politicians had discussions with Ms Sturgeon. They expressed a common a desire to remain in the EU although they disagree on remaining in the UK.

Gibraltar’s Deputy Chief Minister Dr Joseph Garcia told the conference he wanted Spain to learn to respect the will of the people.

“That is what self-determination means and what democracy is all about,” he said, calling for “different parts of the British family of nations” to enjoy varying degrees of participation with the EU after Brexit.

This chimes with SNP policy for special arrangements for those British areas that voted Remain.

Gibraltar is technically a territory of the UK and is represented in the European Parliament as part of the south-west England constituency.

Clare Moody, the local MEP, voiced “amazement” that Mrs May had not mentioned the Rock in her letter triggering Article 50, and she reminded the government it had a duty to “represent the people of Gibraltar”.

She told the BBC: “If the government has overlooked the interests of Gibraltar which is a crucial part of the kind of constitutional arrangements of our membership of the EU, then what else are they going to overlook as well?”

Ms Sturgeon, who wants Scotland to continue to have membership of the EU single market or access to it, is on record insisting that the government should strive for a special deal for Scotland, Northern Ireland, London and Gibraltar.

This means circumventing a hard Brexit for these four areas. “It just requires some political will,” she has argued.

News Bites

May to hold talks with Merkel in Berlin
Theresa May is due to hold talks with German Chancellor Angela Merkel as she seeks to make progress on negotiating Brexit. The PM will travel to Berlin for the meeting at the Chancellery. It comes a day ahead of a speech on Saturday in which she is expected to set out the “security partnership” she wants to maintain with the EU. The UK is under pressure to reveal more detail about the final relationship it wants with the EU. Mrs May and her ministers are setting out what has been dubbed “the road to Brexit” in a series of speeches. BBC news, February 16

UK aims to keep financial rules close to EU
The UK is ready to set out its vision for how it wants financial services to operate after Brexit and favours an ambitious “mutual recognition” of regulations to preserve the City of London’s access to the EU. Under Britain’s proposal, the UK and the EU would recognise each other’s regulatory and supervisory regimes and would have aligned rules at the point of Brexit, with a mechanism that would monitor any divergence. Three senior figures briefed on Brexit discussions in the cabinet said that the government will back the proposal, which is also favoured by Mark Carney, the Bank of England governor. Financial Times, February 16

Business leader warns May against harsh immigration policy
British companies are facing a recruitment crisis, with labour shortages hitting critical levels in some sectors, according to a business leader who has urged the government to produce details on a post-Brexit immigration system. Adam Marshall, the director general of the British Chambers of Commerce, said the lack of candidates for some jobs was biting hard, and he warned ministers against bringing forward a “draconian and damaging” visa or work permit system. Surveys by the BCC showed that nearly three-quarters of firms trying to recruit had been experiencing difficulties “at or near the highest levels since [BCC] records began over 25 years ago”, he said. The Guardian, February 16

Lecturers want ‘radical’ tuition fee review
University staff are calling for a “radical” overhaul of tuition fees and higher education funding in England in a review of student finance. Sally Hunt, leader of the University and College Union, says the review must be more than “tinkering at the edges”. The review, expected to be formally announced in the near future, follows a promise by the prime minister to examine the cost of university. Theresa May said the review would show “we have listened and we have learned”. Ms Hunt, whose members are threatening strike action next week in a pensions dispute, says there needs to be a “fundamental look at university funding”. BBC news, February 16

Shampoo ‘as bad a health risk as car fumes’
Shampoo, oven cleaner, deodorant and other household products are as significant a source of the most dangerous form of air pollution as cars, research has found. Scientists studying air pollution in Los Angeles found that up to half of particles known as volatile organic compounds (VOCs) came from domestic products, which also include paint, pesticides, bleach and perfumes. These compounds degrade into particles known as PM2.5, which cause respiratory problems and are implicated in 29,000 premature deaths each year in the UK. Traffic had been assumed to be the biggest source of air pollution. The new findings, published in the journal Science, led to warnings that countries may struggle to hit pollution targets, with most tackling vehicle emissions. The Times, February 16

US rejects China bid for Chicago Stock Exchange
The US has rejected a proposed merger between the Chicago Stock Exchange and a Chinese-linked investor group. The decision comes after more than two years of reviews by officials. The tie-up was initially approved by the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States, pending further approval by the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). But US politicians, including President Trump, have said letting a Chinese firm invest in a US exchange was a bad idea. Under the proposal, the Chinese-led North America Casin Holdings group would have bought a minority share of the privately owned Chicago Stock Exchange. BBC news, February 16

Labour gets 16,000 emails in five days urging it to consult on Brexit
More than 16,000 people have emailed Labour over the past five days, urging the party to consult members on Brexit after MPs said the topic was being ignored by its most senior policy body. The emails from party members will be examined by the party’s national policy forum (NPF), which meets this weekend in Leeds, and whose members include the shadow cabinet and trade union leaders. Labour has set up eight policy commissions since last year’s general election, to consult members and develop policy, but none focus on Brexit. The party has said Brexit is covered under the international policy commission, involving Keir Starmer, the shadow Brexit secretary, but that commission is not at the moment accepting submissions on Brexit. The Guardian, February 15